Scope of CCP-backed Chinese exchange program inside American schools uncovered in sweeping report

FIRST ON FOX : Dozens of American colleges, high schools, middle schools and elementary schools have taken part in a program launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping and run by an agency dedicated to promoting "Marxism-Leninism," a new report published by the parents' rights group Defending Education found.

At least 83 universities and 26 K-12 schools across 30 states have participated in Beijing’s Young Envoys Scholarship, an exchange program which the Chinese Communist Party says is designed to improve relations with the United States, according to the report.

Critics, however, maintain that Chinese exchange programs serve a political function, allowing the CCP to curate manicured experiences to unduly sway American perceptions of China .

The program’s reach underscores how Beijing uses educational exchanges to build influence with American students even as U.S. officials, the president among them, are increasingly scrutinizing CCP efforts to shape public opinion and gain footholds in institutions.

The new Defending Education report raises questions about what students are shown in China, who shapes those experiences and whether schools and families fully understand the political implications of participation.

HARVARD TOPS NATION IN FOREIGN CASH HAUL AS COTTON DEMANDS PROBE INTO CHINA FUNDING "The Chinese Communist Party engages in cognitive warfare to distort American perceptions of the CCP‘s endless human rights abuses and global aggression," Michael Lucci, the CEO of the national security nonprofit State Armor, told Fox News Digital.

"They are reaching deep into our education system to influence American students as one of their influence operations to try to change the way Americans think." Xi established the program in 2023 with the aim of inviting 50,000 young Americans to the country over five years.

The China Education Association for International Exchange, which runs the program, uses "Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory … and Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as its guiding ideology and action guide," according to a translation of its Chinese-language website.

"These aren't just cultural trips.

They're an integral part of China's broader soft power strategy aimed at infiltrating America's classrooms ," Reagan Dugan, the director of Defending Education’s higher education initiative, told Fox News Digital.

"Disclosure requirements need to catch up.

American students and families deserve to know if their school is partnering with a CCP operation." The Chinese government maintains that their exchange programs are not intended to serve a political purpose, however.